The real people

We are the Service User Consultation Group for Middlesbrough Addictive Behaviours Service and would like to respond to your reporting in the last few weeks of two murders that have occurred in this area.

We are the Service User Consultation Group for Middlesbrough Addictive Behaviours Service and would like to respond to your reporting in the last few weeks of two murders that have occurred in this area.

The persistent use of descriptions such as 'prostitute' and 'heroin addict' must make the pain of the grieving families so much harder to bear.

We know these facts are relevant to the reporting of such atrocious crimes, but to continually refer to these victims using these terms appears to suggest, for instance, that someone working as a prostitute or as a heroin addict is more important than the fact they have been murdered.

The families of these victims are already grieving, how much worse must those left behind feel when their son or daughter is continually described in this way?

We have been made to feel we are a scourge of society already, this type of reporting seems to suggest that in some way such deaths are 'deserved' or victims are to blame.

There is good and bad in everyone, maybe you could consider the person behind the drug addiction and their families, not just at face value.

SERVICE USER CONSULTATION GROUP Middlesbrough Addictive Behaviours Service N Ormesby

EDITOR'S FOOTNOTE: We do appreciate the personalities behind the terms, which is why we launched Kerb The Crawlers campaign to help get the girls out of dangerous situations and Families Against Drugs in support of addicts and those close to them.

We use the terms with stories only when it is entirely relevant. But we will always strive to portray the real warm people behind such cold terms.